BETHLEHEM, Israeli settlers attacked today evening three Palestinian women while they were picking a wild vegetable called “akoub” in the village of Kisan to the east of Bethlehem, according to local activist, Ahmad Ghazal.

Several settlers attacked and pepper-sprayed three women, including two sisters, while they were gathering a wild vegetable called “akoub, known in English as Gundelia, which grows naturally in the mountains during the springtime.

Extremist Israeli settlers’ violence against Palestinians and their property is routine in the West Bank and is rarely prosecuted by Israeli authorities.

“Settler violence has long since become part of Palestinians’ daily life under occupation. Israeli security forces enable these actions, which result in Palestinian casualties – injuries and fatalities – as well as damage to land and property. In some cases, they even serve as an armed escort, or even join in the attacks,” said the Israeli information center for human rights in occupied territories, B’Tselem.

“Investigations, if even opened, are usually closed with no action taken against perpetrators as part of an undeclared policy of leniency. The long-term effect of this violence is the dispossession of Palestinians from increasing parts of the West Bank, making it easier for Israel to take over land and resources,” said B’Tselem.

Source: Palestine News & Info